2torial #0606:
Learn2 Eat Sushi

No, "wasabi" is not Japanese for "crying baby"

Sushi is one of Japan's most delightful foods. Though many people in the United States (and other Western countries) cringe at the thought of eating raw fish, millions throughout the globe salivate at the thought of sweet seaweed, fluffy rice, fresh vegetables and tangy spices arranged in a detailed, painstaking fashion.

Eating all this sometimes takes some preparation so you don't embarrass yourself or your dinner companion with bits of food flying all over your placemat. There are also many different names to learn and procedures to follow, making this 2torial essential for any novice sushi eaters, and even the more experienced diner. And for those who don't quite know how they feel about this edible art, this 2torial may well convince you that sushi is a wonderful, tasty and healthy food (most every piece of sushi has only a gram of fat or less!)

Establish a budget. Most everything served at a sushi bar is à la carte. And while the price per order may not seem like much, once you've sampled from the intriguing list of fishes, fish roes, hand rolls, soup, sides and pickles, you may go into shock when handed the bill. Be sensible. Think about prices and your tastes before you take that first sip of sake.

Research that restaurant! Recommendations from knowledgeable sushi fanatics are best, but you'll do quite well on your own if you know and apply a few maxims:

• The best sushi experiences hinge on first-rate ingredients and skillful preparation. Be prepared to pay for both. The most expensive sushi place in town isn't necessarily the best, but on the other hand, cheapo places (especially those that push an all-you-can-eat special) should be approached cautiously. If they're under pressure to cut costs, they're likely to be cutting corners in quality.
  
• Cleanliness reigns supreme, as does freshness. So while a restaurant's popularity could be merely the result of slick marketing savvy, it also suggests that the fish you see glistening in the display case were likely swimming earlier in the day. A smart sushi chef only orders what he knows he or she can sell quickly.
  
• Sushi preparation is art form, performed in public. Sushi chefs traditionally prepare the rice and raw materials before opening, but actually make each piece of sushi on demand, in full view of the waiting diners. If a restaurant's offering simply emerges from the depth of the kitchen, it's probably not being prepared by a sushi specialist.

Understand menu items

Most sushi bars have diagrams or picture charts for non-Japanese speaking customers, but it's great to be able to communicate exactly what you want to the chef instead of gesticulating wildly and mumbling "tuna--white--that, yes." Here are a few basic sushi menu staples. Menus always vary, but these can almost always be found.

For those of you that are health conscious (and who isn't?) it's reassuring to know that all these items have low caloric counts. We'll give you approximations (per piece or a sixth of a roll) where possible.

• Nigiri: This slightly more expensive sushi is essentially a rice pad with raw fish on top. Types of fish include salmon (soft pink color), tuna (dark pink/red color), fatty tuna (looks like salmon but has large lines of white fat running through it), halibut (white with silver edges), and mackerel (white). Caloric content can vary wildly. One of the fattiest is the roasted eel (one of the few in which the fish is traditionally served hot).
  
• California roll: This sushi bar basic contains vegetables including fresh avocado, cucumber, or carrot, with a little crab meat or tuna. All this is wrapped in a thin sheet of seaweed and then packed against rice. 20 calories.
  
• Kappa maki, tekka maki, and oshinko maki: These are all small single-item rolls wrapped in thin seaweed and packed in rice. Kappa is cucumber, tekka is tuna, and oshinko is pickled ginger. These are small and sweet, and usually served in quantities of six or more. 15 calories.
  
• Maguro and toro: Tuna and fatty tuna. Mostly packed as nigiri, it can be served a number of ways, like art usually is. Regular tuna is a dark red-pink, but fatty tuna looks almost like salmon, and has wide, white lines of fat through it. 25 calories.

Lay the appropriate groundwork

Your first stint at the bar will be more relaxed and enjoyable if you know what to expect and how to respond. For, despite the congenial spirit at most sushi bars, there is indeed a proper decorum.

• Wipe your hands. Once seated, your waitress will arrive bearing an oshibori--a moist, steaming, rolled white hand towel--in a basket or on a tray. Use it to wipe your hands, then place it back, loosely folded, on the tray (or, if not available, to your right at the edge of the counter).
  
• Prepare your hashi (chopsticks). Remove the paper wrapper, then separate the joined pair into two sticks. If your chopsticks are splintered, you may rub them together to smooth them, but please be discreet. Better sushi bars offer quality chopsticks that don't require sanding.
  

• Rest the chopsticks. If your placesetting includes a hashi oki (chopstick rest), position it so that your chopsticks lie about two inches (about 3 cm) away from and parallel to the edge of the counter. If not, make your own rest by folding the wrapper in half crosswise, then lengthwise, to make a V-shaped form. Turn it over so the rest stands stable, and position in front of you as above. Alternately, fold the wrapper into a simple knot: the triangular result lies flat on the counter, with openings to slide your chopsticks into.
  
• Mix your wasabi (horseradish). Usually, you're served a green substance that looks just like avocado. Don't, repeat DO NOT eat it like it is! That green stuff is wasabi, a spicy horseradish. Even if you're not fond hot substances, mixing a little of this with your soy sauce can take some of the salt out of the soy sauce (12 calories per tablespoon) and season it besides. This is fiery stuff: some folks are almost macho about how much they can stand to apply, while others swear that the slightest amount is painful. Tread cautiously, and find your own limit. Don't look at the habits of your more experienced friends as any sort of guide.

Learn what you can order, and from whom

If the sushi bar is but part of a larger, full-service restaurant, be aware that only sushi, sashimi, soups, drinks and some snacks are served there. Everything else is served in the dining room--the rich aroma of cooked dishes interferes with the appreciation of sushi's more subtle allure. In addition:

• Your sushi chef fills only your requests for sushi. If you're having a sushi-only experience, consider sitting up at the sushi bar rather than at a table or booth. That way you can point at what looks intriguing, or even ask the chef to improvise.
  
• Your waiter or waitress takes care of everything else; drinks (green tea, sake and beer are the preferred); soups (most often miso); tsukemono (pickles), and certain other snacks. Some sushi bars offer little nibbles with your drink: don't pass on the edamame--whole cooked soybeans, salted in the pod and eaten like roasted peanuts in the shell.

Start simply

Is there really a "right" way to season and eat sushi? There is an accepted etiquette--but as far as which dishes you prefer and how you want to season them, it's up to you. The best bet is to start simply and work up from there as your palate becomes more educated to the shadings of sushi flavors.

• Soup and salads: Miso soup and salad greens make wonderful appetizers. Greens usually consist of cucumber strips and a wonderful, seasoned white vinegar. Miso soup is a warm broth with chunks of tofu, and often with strips of vegetables. Sip this with both hands on the bowl, letting yourself be wild without a spoon. Be careful--these things are so tasty that you'll need to remind yourself to save room for the sushi. Miso preparation varies widely from restaurant to restaurant, and indeed from person to person (in Japan, most people seem to swear that the only person who knows how to do it exactly right is their mother).
  
• Choose a basic roll. There are several basic rolls that are the standard for any sushi menu. They are usually all small and served in quantities of six, though the servings may vary from place to place. Small pieces of fish or vegetables surrounded by white rice and wrapped in thin sheets of seaweed, they include cucumber or carrot rolls, avocado rolls, salmon and tuna rolls, and the ubiquitous California roll. Dipping the ends of these in the soy sauce mixture will surely delight--just make the dip quick, no so long as to make the roll get mushy.
  By the way, you can eat rolls with chopsticks or simply pick them up and pop them into your mouth--there's no absolutely correct method. In fact, tradition maintains that sushi rolls were orginally invented as a convenience food, to be eaten by hand much like sandwiches.

  Step up to more elaborate dishes

• Move on to the nigiri. After warming up your tastebuds with the rolls, you may move on to the larger, more engaging fish. Here you get much larger rice and slabs of fish sometimes accompanied by roe (i.e., fish eggs) or sesame seeds. These can be difficult to eat because of their size and the way the rice sticks together with the seaweed makes it hard to break them apart. If you can manage it without the whole thing falling apart, take it in two bites--if not, just don't talk with your very full mouth!
  You should eat nigiri with chopsticks, but if you're not too adept with these instruments, take consolation in the fact that not much action is necessary. Just pick up the whole, dip it quickly in the soy/wasabi mix, then pop the thing into your mouth. If you can't manage a whole piece of nigiri, there's no shame in asking for a knife, then cutting them in two before proceeding.

• Replenish with wasabi and pickled ginger. With so many different treats to tantalize your taste buds with, it's nice to have a refreshing break between bites. In many cultures, water clears the palate, but in the sushi bar it's pickled ginger, or oshinko (only 15 calories per tablespoon full). Small bites of this sweet root clears sinuses and tastes alike, so eat it slowly. Wasabi does the same thing, but is used as a season for your soy sauce too.
  
• Indulge in custom creations. Once you've gotten a rapport with the chef, try asking him or her what's especially good today. Quite often they're proud of a nice fish they bought personally, and they'll come up with a custom special. If you like it, ask for the name in Japanese. If you don't, grimace in a good-natured way and chalk it up to experience. When experimenting, it's a good idea to have a supply of a more staid stuff (such as a basic tekka maki) on hand to push away any lingering taste).
  
• Close your eyes. Sushi isn't just food, it's taste theater--flavors are designed to wash over your tongue in graceful sequence. If you're put off by the ingredients, try relaxing and closing your eyes after you've taken a bite. It should intensify the theater-in-the-mouth experience.
  
• Have fun with hand rolls. If you like a particular kind of maki roll, try asking for it in hand-roll form. A hand roll consists of the same ingredients, not cut up but put in a substantial cone (somewhat reminiscent of an ice cream cone). They're treats that don't always make it on the menu--but just about every sushi chef will cheerfully oblige.
  
• Trust your tongue. Even the biggest sushi afficionados don't love all kinds of sushi--it's about variety, so don't be afraid to build your own personal list of favorites and ignore peer pressure of any sort. If you don't like clam or salmon roe or whole sweet shrimp, just smile and pass on that round. A world of flavors is always just another order away.

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